Ronaldas Macas

I am a 4th year PhD student working on the theory and data analysis of unmodelled gravitational-wave burst signals with the Advanced LIGO and Virgo detectors.

I graduated from the University of Glasgow with an MSc in Physics and Astronomy in 2016.

Research interests

My research focuses on the theory and data analysis of unmodelled gravitational-wave (GW) burst signals, such as from supernovae.

The interpretation of all signals detected so far relies on comparing the data to precise signal models; however, burst sources are notoriously difficult to model. I am developing a template-less algorithm that allows us to reconstruct the motion of the source of the gravitational waves.

There are gravitational-wave sources that also emit electromagnetic waves detected by space telescopes. The most famous example to date has been the collision of two binary neutron stars, GW170817-GRB170817A. My second project is searching gravitational waves associated with gamma-ray bursts in Advanced LIGO and VIRGO data using X-pipeline (Sutton et al., NJP 12 053034).